Triterpene alcohol is a component of rice bran, olive seeds, corn seeds, aloe and the like, and is the collective name of a series of compounds such as cycloartenol, 24-methylene-cycloartanol, cycloartanol, and cyclobranol. Triterpene alcohol is one of main alcohol components of γ-oryzanol.
In particular, cycloartenol and 24-methylene-cycloartanol are said to have similar physiological actions to γ-oryzanol, and are reported to have the blood cholesterol lowering effect, neutral fat absorption inhibiting effect, and antidiabetic effect.
Triterpene alcohol is produced from the hydrolysate of oryzanol obtained by extracting and recrystallizing deacidified foots, which are formed during the production of rice bran oil or the like. As examples of the method, Patent Document 1 reports the method including subjecting crude oryzanol to alkaline hydrolysis, followed by extraction with acetone and benzene, and then recrystallization and purification with methanol, and Patent Document 2 reports the method including subjecting crude oryzanol to alkaline hydrolysis, followed by precipitation in ice water.
Alternatively, Patent Document 3 reports the method for producing ferulic acid, including subjecting crude oryzanol to alkaline hydrolysis, mixing with hexane, removing the hexane-soluble matter, and then adding dilute sulfuric acid to make the aqueous solution acidic.